Water-heating apparatus



y 1947- T. A. BUCKLES WATER HEATING APPARATUS Filed April 24, 1944 I Z W Z XVII? a M1?, M la,

THUMAS A..BL/CKL 5 INVENTOR.

Patented July 8, 1947 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 1 Claim.

This invention relates to improvements in water heaters and has for its principal object the provision of means for controlling the circulation of the water through the heating element and also valve means for controlling the cold water supply to the interior of the tank through the bottom end thereof, said valve means also preventing circulation or mixing of the cold water with the heated water at all times.

The foregoing and other objects will appear as my invention is more fully hereinafter described in the following specification illustrated in the accompanying drawing, and finally pointed out p in the appended claim.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation of a water heater made in accordance with my invention.

Figure 2 is a sectional plan view taken on the line 2-2 of Figure 1.

Refering now more particularly to the draw- Reference numeral I indicates a water boiler of more or less conventional design surrounded by a jacket of insulating material 2 and encased by an outer cylindrical casing 3. The lowermost end of the casing is turned inwardly as at 4 to support itself, the insulating material and the tank I upon any approved form of base, generally indicated at 5. The upper end of the outer casing 3 is provided with a removable lid portion 6. Secured to and extending through the bottom wall I of the boiler I is a heating unit generally indicated at 8, within which is enclosed an electrical heating element 9 supplied with electrical energy from any convenient source of supply by means of cables Ill. The housing of the heating unit is of greater diameter than the heating element 9 to provide a space to receive a supply of water coming from a pipe I I connected through a valve control means, generally indicated at I2, with a water supply pipe I2A. The uppermost end of the heating unit 8 is slotted as at I3 to allow the heated water coming up through the element 8 to be delivered to the interior of the boiler I. This end of the heating unit is embraced by and disposed within a fitting I 4 formed on the top wall I5 of the boiler and into this fitting is attached an elbow IB connecting with a pipe I! which through an elbow I8 connects with an outlet pipe I9 which extends downwardly alongside the tank and terminates within or below the base thereof and connects with a pipe connection to a. hot-water outlet fixture (not shown) A thermostat 20 extends through or into contact wtih the boiler to partake of the temperature thereof and is electrically connected in the supply circuit In in the conventional manner and is set to open and close the electrical circuit to the heating element at predetermined high and low temperatures, respectively, of the water in the boiler.

The valve control means I2, previously referred to, consists of a housing 2I whose upper end is closed as at 22 and formed with relatively large apertures 23. The interior of the housing is in open communication with the water supply pipe IZA, as at 24. The lowermost end of the housing terminates in a valve seat 25 to seat a fixed valve 26 formed integral with a hollow tubular stem or vertical extension 2! closed at its upper end and formed with relatively small openings 28 in its Wall. The stem is open through the valve 26 and in open communication with the pipe II connecting with the interior of the heating unit 8. From the foregoing it will be apparent that water from the supply pipe I2A may flow through the valve housing, through the apertures 23 therein into the boiler and through the smaller openings 28 in the valve stem 21 into the interior of the heating unit 8.

ihe operation of the invention is as follows:

Assuming that the boiler has just been installed and filled with cold water which comes up through the intake I2A through the valve housing 2|, apertures 23 therein and into the boiler to fill the same. Water also passes through the apertures 28 in the upper end of the valve stem thence through the pipe II and into the heating unit 8 which houses the heating element 9. When this is accomplished, the thermostat 20 closes the circuit I 0 to the heating element -9 and the same heats the water within the heating unit 8. This heated water of course rises to the top of the heating unit and enters the boiler through the slots I3 in the upper end of the heating unit. Eventually of course the entire contents of the boiler become heated and with all outlets closed the hot water circulates upwardly and the cold water downwardly through the valve I2 and into the heating unit. When the outlet fixture (not shown) is open and the hot water is bein drawn off, the circulation stops and as the hot water is drawn out through the slots I3 in the heating unit 8 at its upper end and through the outlet pipe II, cold water enters the bottom of the boiler through the valve housin 2|, through the apertures 28 in the upper end of the hollow valve stem 20 then through the pipe I I to the interior of the heating unit. The water being heated by the unit travels upwardly therein and of course draws the cold Water from the bottom of the boiler through the apertures 23 into the hollow valve stem and into the bottom of the heating unit. Thus the water in the boiler circulates through the valve into the heatin element and out of the top thereof into the upper end of the boiler.

Assuming now, that the boiler is filled with hot water and through the medium of the thermostat the heating element is 01? and hot Water is being drawn from the top of the boiler, then the cold water entering the bottom of the boiler, through the large openings 23 of the valve housing, is prevented from backing down through the hollow stem 2? and into the heating unit since in the absence of heat therein there is no upward pull or upward movement of the water in the heating unit, thus the system is now rendered non-circulating. Conversely when the heating element is heating circulation is created by the water passing upwardly therethrough and consequently drawing cold water from the supply pipe I2A through the hollow stem 27, pipe H and into the heating element. Briefly stated it may be said that when the heat is on circulation is created; when the heat is 01f the system is non-circulating.

While I have shown a particular form of embodiment of my invention, I am aware that many minor changes therein will readily suggest themselves to others skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

A water heater comprising a boiler closed at both of its ends, a heating unit extending through both ends of the boiler and in open communication near its upper end with the interior of the boiler, an outlet pipe in communication with the uppermost end of the heating unit and extending downwardly and outwardly into communication with an outlet fixture, a cold water supply pipe in communication with the interior of the boiler at the lowermost end of the heating unit through a valve means extending through the bottom wall of the boiler into communication with the interior hereof, said valve means consisting of a vertically disposed hollow body member in communication through apertures at its upper end with the interior of the boiler and in communication near its lower end with a cold water supply pipe, a fixed hollow valve stem disposed within the valve housing and terminating at its lowermost end in a hollow valve fixedly seated in the bottom of the valve housing and in communication "with a pipe for directing cold water to the m terior of said heating unit, whereby upward movement of the heated water within the heating unit draws cold water from the cold Water supply pipe through said hollow valve stem and into the heating unit.

THOMAS A. BUCKLES.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,442,048 Christian Jan. 16, 1923 2,012,101 Hynes Aug. 20, 1935 1,03%,952 Ball Aug. 6, 1912 1,653,672 Shriner Dec. 27, 1927 2,151,854 Knapp Mar. 28, 1939 1,727,881 Hoyt Sept. 10, 1929 

